Improvement in thills



W. BENSON; Y

THILLS.

No. 184,578; Patented Nov. 21,1876.

INVENTOR. W/am Wm %KM4-' ATTORNEYS, I

" TATES FFIC.

ATEN'I WASHINGTON BENSON, OF GBINNELL, IOWA.

IMPROVEMENT m THILLS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 184,578, dated November 21, 1876; application filed September 30, 1876.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WASHINGTON BENsoN, of Grinnell, in the county of Powe'shiek and State of Iowa, have invented a new and valuable Improvement in Thills and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this speci fication, and to the letters and figures of ref-- erence marked thereon.

The figure of the drawings is a representation of a plan view of my thill. v

The object of this invention is to allow the draft-horse of a wagon or sled to tread upon. that part of the road which is smoothest and firmest without removing the wheels or runners from the ruts. This I accomplish by curving or bending both the thills to one side, and providing the whiffletree with a com pensating attachment, whereby the draft is made perfectly even and central, as hereinafter set forth.

In the annexed drawings, A is the front axle of a buggy or other Wheeled vehicle and B B are the thills or shafts of the same, which are secured to said axle near the ends thereof by clips I) b. O is a cross-bar connecting said thills.

Thill B is first bent inward at 1) toward the line of draft; then turns outward and inward in a slight curve, b so as to make room for the hind quarters of the horse, and finally ends in a slight outward bend, b which is almost in the direct longitudinal central line of said vehicle. Thill B is at first extended straight forward at b,- then is bent into a curve, b which is larger than b and opposite thereto, serving the same purpose. and finally terminates at b almost directly in front of its point of attachment to axle A. This shape of the thills causes the horse to be placed on one side of the central longitudinal line of the said vehicle, so that when the wheels are in the rats the horses hoofs tread upon the firmest and smoothest part of the track, which is one of the two strips of firm earth intervening between the wagon-Wheel ruts, and the unworn place in the cepter.

Said smooth or firm strips are worn. by the hoofs of previously-passing horses driven in double team.

To the end of crossbar 0 that is opposite to the direction in which said thills are bent, I pivot at d an equalizing-lever, D. E is a whiffietree' secured byclip or strap 0 to the front of the long arm. of said lever D. F is a metal brace-rod, extending diagonally from the end of the short'arm of equalizinglever D to the rear end of thill B, where it is secured by clip f. G is a metal draft-rod, similar in its construction to brace-rod F, and extending from the middle part of the-long arm of lever D across said rod F to the rear end of thill B, where it is secured by clip g. The long end of said lever D, carrying said whiffletree is, of course, on the side nearest to the horse.

The operation of said pivoted lever D and rods F G is to make the line of draft coincide with the central longitudinal line of the vehicle, so that the vehicle may be drawn straight forward, keeping its wheels in the ruts, although the horse is on one side of said central longitudinal line.

By means of the above devices the horse is allowed to have the firmest attainable footing, while the wagon-wheels meet with the least resistance possible under the circumstances. Said devices (including the bent thills) are applicable to sleighs as well as to Wheel vehicles, and with the same advantages.

The curvature of the said thills B B is not necessarily precisely as shown, but may be varied so as to conform to the size and construction of the vehicle.

The arrangement, construction, and methods of attachment of the remaining devices, may also be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit of my inven-' tion.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a vehicle, a pair of thills curved toward one side of said vehicle, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. Equalizing-lever D, having a whiffletree attached to its long arm,in combination with i In testimony that I claimthe above I have cross-bar G, rods F G, and thills B B, all subhereunto subscribed my name in the presence stantially as set forth. of two witnesses.

3. The combination, with a pair of thilis WASHINGTON BENSON. bent to one side, as shown and described, 0f Witnesses: the equalizing devices, substantially as de- ROBERT M. HAINES,

scribed, and for the purpose set forth. HENRY S. MARVIN. 

